Robert Force...is perhaps the most aptly named musician in the country today, because Robert is just that - a force in music, education, community action, and half a dozen other areas as well. A legend among mountain dulcimer players both for his In Search Of The Wild Dulcimer instructional text and for his extension of the instrument's vocabulary from its traditional folk origins into blazingly original styles of play and performance, Robert also engages audiences with a wry wit that is the perfect complement to the passion of his musicianship. Long a mainstay at the MMF, Robert returns to Manitou Springs with his usual - and forceful - combination of visionary innovation and musical artistry.
Judy Piazza
Cripple Creek...is a couple of folks whose craft at making mountain dulcimers is matched only by their mastery at playing them, a world-class tenor banjo player, a robust tenor whose own songs have the simple eloquence of a Guthrie or Paxton, an angelic vocalist and a bassist to anchor your sound on - that's Manitou's own Cripple Creek. Through decades of performance and multiple CDs, this band has delivered roots music, gospel, Americana, satire, protest, and just about anything else you could call folk in rich four part harmony - and with a delightful sense of humor that consistently finds its mark but leaves no one wounded and everyone smiling, usually as they're singing along with the group.
The Chilly Winds
..is a group that brings back the sounds and the memories of the popular folk bands of the late 1950s through the mid-1960s like the Kingston Trio, The Clancy Brothers, the Chad Mitchell Trio, and more. Their driving rhythms and sweet harmonies have delighted audiences at the last several MMFs, not in small measure because much of the audience sings along with most of their songs, which is exactly what they want everyone to do.
Click HERE For Our MMF2008 Performance Schedule
